August 27
TEXAS----impending execution
Advocates race against time----Volunteer group that wants to save death
row inmate Frances Newton cranks up efforts
Frances Newton has lived on death row for nearly 17 years.
Those who want to save her life have 2 1/2 weeks left.
"We're under a time deadline," local activist Gloria Rubac acknowledged
this week. "With Shaka Sankofa (Gary Graham, executed in 2000 after an
intense, high-profile campaign to spare his life) we worked for years and
years. We're contacting people who can help. Whether we get them or not,
we are going to proceed.
"We're doing stuff as fast as we can."
Newton, 40, faces lethal injection Sept. 14 for the murders in 1987 of her
husband and two children. As her attorneys press her case to appeals
judges and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, a volunteer group known
as the Committee to Free Frances Newton is anxiously trying to get a
high-profile person, such as actor Danny Glover, social activist Bianca
Jagger or the Rev. Jesse Jackson, to lend their name to the movement.
Rubac said the committee didn't start working on the case until late last
summer, when Newton's family approached members of the local anti-death
penalty movement. At the time, Newton faced a December execution date.
Gov. Rick Perry eventually granted her a short reprieve to have some
evidence retested.
Public displays
As the legal efforts continue, the volunteers are taking the case to the
court of public opinion. They held a protest Monday in downtown Houston
and plan to march in Austin today. Collectively, nearly 4,000 letters,
faxes and e-mails, overwhelmingly opposed to the execution, have already
landed in the governor's office.
But unlike some previous high-profile Texas cases - from Graham to
Clarence Brandley, who was freed from death row in 1990, to the media
frenzy surrounding Karla Faye Tucker's execution in 1998 - the Newton saga
has yet to capture much public attention.
"I don't know what it is, but this case doesn't appear to be attracting
the kind of passion," said Texas Southern University political scientist
Sanders Anderson. "In the case of Clarence Brandley, there were people
wearing T-shirts to junior high school saying 'Don't Let a Good Man Die.'
The (Newton) effort seems to be coming late and is smaller."
Newton was convicted of capital murder in the April 1987 slayings of her
husband, Adrian Newton, 23, and their children, Alton, 7, and Farrah, 21
months. Prosecutors argued money was a motive, showing that Newton had
purchased life insurance policies for herself, her husband and children
just 3 weeks before the killings.
Newton's defense centered on her husband's drug-dealing, suggesting he and
the children were killed over a drug debt.
Short notice
The Rev. Michael P. Williams was approached just a few months ago. He got
a note shortly before service one Sunday morning at Joy Tabernacle from
supporters wanting a chance to tell the congregation about the case.
Williams had never met Jewel Nelms, Newton's mother, or anyone else
affiliated with efforts to stop the approaching execution. In the privacy
of his study, he was persuaded to let the advocates address the
congregation and leave their literature.
"Who wouldn't hear a mother's plea? I think people were deeply moved by
the mother's appeal and sense that her daughter had not received justice,"
said Williams, who recalled that a large number of parishioners raised
their hands to get more information about the case. "There was a sense
that she deserved another trial."
Public demonstrations, especially when an inmate proclaims innocence, are
common in the anti-death penalty movement. In the case of Brandley, who
spent almost a decade on death row, they proved to be helpful. But the
marches, rallies and Hollywood celebrities weren't enough to save Graham a
decade later.
Modern technology
What the Newton activists lack in time, or profile, they are making up for
by using technology unavailable during those earlier efforts.
Homemade signs, massive phone lists and bullhorns were once the hallmarks
of their demonstrations. Today, Internet users can visit
www.freefrances.org to find flattering pictures of Newton, future public
events and information on how to donate money.
At Monday's midmorning vigil outside the Harris County Criminal Justice
Center, volunteers handed out color postcards addressed to the governor's
office. They also are promoting a DVD about the case that can be
purchased.
Activist Njeri Shakur recalled the campaign to save Graham.
Attracts newcomers
"All we had was our voices, and we were learning the fax machine. We were
relying on phone trees. It was a lot of footwork," she said. "Now, with a
simple e-mail, the message can be picked up and sent from country to
country. We are more sophisticated."
The movement also has attracted newcomers such as Nadine Morandi, whose
demonstration experience had been limited to a few war protests. Now, she
has handed out postcards at Miller Outdoor Theatre, and she plans to
attend the Austin rally today.
"We have so little time, we have to give it all the time we have," she
said. "It's important to let her know that people care about her."
"I'm a firm believer in the power of public opinion," said Massoud Nayeri,
another newcomer to the anti-death penalty movement. "It's like Cindy
Sheehan (of the ongoing anti-war protest in Crawford). She's speaking from
the heart for all mothers. We're doing the same for Frances."
RESOURCES
The approach of Frances Newton's scheduled Sept. 14 execution has sparked
interest from a variety of sources.
- Web site: www.freefrances.org
- March and rally: 2 p.m. today in Austin
- Texans speak out: Through Friday, Gov. Rick Perry's office had received
1,806 pieces of correspondence from Texas, all opposed to the execution.
- From other states and internatinally: The governor's office had received
2,281 pieces of correspondence, all opposing it.
(source: Houston Chronicle)
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Doctors could face death penalty for illegal abortions, some say
Doctors who perform illegal abortions in Texas could be prosecuted for
capital murder and face a death sentence under recent changes in Texas law
that have resulted in apparent unintended consequences.
While officials familiar with the new legislation say such prosecutions
are unlikely, the possibility of a doctor on death row, whether
intentional or not, puts a sharp focus on the importance of analyzing
legislative activity every 2 years, officials say.
That's what Lindsey Roberts, director of training for the Texas District
and County Attorneys Association, was doing last week when he gave a
legislative update to local prosecutors and defense attorneys at Baylor
University.
Roberts spoke about a bill signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry in June at a
Fort Worth church school that requires parental consent before minors can
have abortions and places additional restrictions on late-term abortions.
In relation to those changes, Roberts noted that the Legislature two years
ago altered the definition of an individual in homicide statutes from "a
human being who has been born and is alive" to "a human being who is
alive, including an unborn child at every stage of gestation, from
fertilization until birth."
There was debate when the definition of individual was changed about
whether the effect would make abortion the equivalent of murder. So
lawmakers took particular care to write into the homicide statute that a
lawful medical procedure performed with consent by a physician or other
licensed health-care provider, if the death of the unborn child was the
intended result, is an abortion. That provided a lawful defense or
exception to homicide laws.
Continuing to connect the statutory dots, however, Roberts told local
prosecutors that there is no such defense provided for a doctor who
performs an unlawful medical procedure, such as an abortion on a minor
without parental consent.
So, in effect, the doctor would have killed a child younger than 6 in an
illegal abortion and thereby subjected himself or herself to potential
prosecution for capital murder, Roberts told the dumbfounded audience.
"This is a case study of sorts on how changing one code can have dramatic
effects on other codes that actually reference those statutes," Roberts
said. "I presented it as an unintended consequence on a change to the
civil code, but you will have to talk to your local prosecutors there
about how they will handle those situations. I just presented what the
Legislature has done."
McLennan County District Attorney John Segrest, who attended Roberts'
seminar, would not comment publicly on the possible effects of the law
changes.
"I don't comment on hypotheticals," Segrest said.
In signing the parental consent bill, Perry said, "Today, we are laying
down a significant marker in the effort to create a culture of life by
protecting those who can't protect themselves, by giving voice to the
voiceless who yearn for life."
Robert Black, the governor's deputy press secretary, said last week that
his office was not aware of the potential created by the new bill for
doctors who perform illegal abortions to face possible death sentences.
"During the legislative process, a lot of folks see conspiracies
everywhere," Black said. "But the fact is that the parental notification
law as well as the parental consent legislation that the governor has
always supported is intended to protect young girls and protect the rights
of parents. What you mentioned is a hypothetical and we are not going down
the road of hypotheticals."
Roberts said he is no conspiracy theorist.
"We are just giving facts. We pitched this as an unintended consequence,"
Roberts said. "It shows you that when they change one thing, for whatever
reason they changed it, it can have an effect on other things. It happens
all the time. We are just telling it like it is."
State Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, authored the original parental
consent bill that was killed by a point of order. It later was sponsored
by Will Hartnett, R-Dallas, and included in an amendment to other
legislation. He said the parental consent law was passed because
authorities were convinced that the parental notification law was not
effective.
"Wow. I understand what they are saying, but I can tell you that there was
never any legislative intent for that at all," King said. "You have really
gotten my curiosity up, though. I am going to have to look into this. So
often there is such a weird collateral action that results from some
bills."
Brent Annear, a spokesman for the Texas Medical Center in Austin, said he
also was not aware of the possible effects that the law changes might have
on physicians.
"We didn't write the legislation and therefore can't speak for the
authors. But we certainly would oppose any legislation with that stated
purpose," Annear said.
Pam Smallwood, executive director of Planned Parenthood of Central Texas,
said she is aware that unintended legislative consequences occur, but
added that this set of circumstances likely won't come into play.
"It is a reach because it presumes that medical providers are not going to
follow the law," Smallwood said. "Certainly, I suspect that medical
providers are going to follow the law and certainly, Planned Parenthood is
as one of these. We followed parental notification to a 'T' and we will
follow parental consent to a 'T,' which makes this all nothing to worry
about as far as I am concerned."
Joe Pojman, a former NASA aerospace engineer who is executive director for
Texas Alliance for Life, supported the parental consent bill and followed
its progress through the Legislature. He said he knows that there was
never any intent for doctors who perform illegal abortions to face capital
murder charges.
"I don't think that is going to happen and it definitely wasn't the
intent," Pojman said. "No one ever raised this concern during the
legislative process, including those of the opposition. I think it is
pretty clear that no one has tried to apply the law in that manner for
abortions performed without parental notification and we don't expect it
to be applied when an abortion is performed on a minor without getting the
consent of a parent."
(source: Waco Tribune-Herald)
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Jury weighs death penalty in Valley massacre
A jury was deliberating Friday whether a man who supplied weapons for a
gang raid that left six dead anticipated the murders and should be
sentenced to death.
Jurors found Rodolfo "Kreeper" Medrano, 26, guilty of capital murder
Thursday.
He became the 3rd man convicted in the 2003 invasion in which men in
police garb showered 2 houses with bullets. Killed were brothers Jerry
Eugene Hidalgo, 24, and Ray Hidalgo, 30; Ruben Rolando Castillo, 32; Jimmy
Edward Almendariz, 22; and half brothers Juan Delgado Jr., 32, and Juan
Delgado III, 20.
Juan Raul Navarro Ramirez, 20, and Humberto "Gallo" Garza, 31, are on
death row for the killings. Robert Gene "Bones" Garza, 22, was indicted in
the killings but is on death row for the 2002 killings of four women in
Donna.
6 more men are awaiting trial, and 2 are believed to be hiding in Mexico.
The jury announced the verdict after about 4 hours of deliberation.
*******************************
Life without parole among new laws taking effect Sept. 1
The law for punishing capital murderers in the nation's No. 1 death
penalty state is about to change as Texas juries get the option of
sentencing defendants to life in prison without parole.
Whether the new law will mean fewer executions remains unknown, though
some death penalty opponents say it will. Attorneys aren't so sure. Texas
has executed 12 inmates so far this year, and 348 since the state resumed
the death penalty in 1982.
"Texas is still going to get a lot of death sentences," said Keith
Hampton, legislative chair of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers
Association.
The life without parole law is one of hundreds of new laws taking effect
Thursday following the spring legislative session.
The life without parole bill gained momentum in the final days of the
legislative session after years of political bickering.
Until now, jurors in Texas capital murder cases had 2 sentencing options:
execution by lethal injection or life in prison with the possibility of
parole after 40 years. The new law takes away any chance of parole.
"I'm very pleased that we're at this point," said Sen. Eddie Lucio,
D-Brownsville, who kept pushing the legislation. "I think the winners
here, and, I hate to say it, it's bittersweet, are the families of
victims. They're going to have some kind of closure."
The new sentencing option will let victims' families and jurors know that
a capital murderer sentenced to prison for life won't ever be released,
Lucio said.
Among the 38 states with the death penalty, Texas, New Mexico and Alaska
were the only ones without the life without parole option, Lucio said.
[MY NOTE----Alaska does NOT have the death penalty]
The Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association sought to keep life in
prison with the possibility of parole as a possible sentence.
"Give jurors all of the options. Give judges all of the options," Hampton
said.
Lucio originally wanted to keep the parole option but relented to win
enough support for passage of the bill.
The Texas District and County Attorneys Association didn't take a stand on
the proposal because prosecutors had differing views. Those opinions
sometimes depended on whether the prosecutor was from a small community
where death penalty cases are rare, or a large city with numerous capital
murder cases.
"Most prosecutors would tell you there really wasn't a reason to make a
change," Kepple said.
Perhaps the biggest change from the law may come in plea bargaining,
Hampton said. He suggested that prosecutors may opt against costly capital
murder trials that seek the death penalty if they can offer pleas that
ensure life in prison with no possibility of parole.
(source for both: Associated Press)
